Leveraging qualitative approaches to guide sustainable international research collaborations.

Qualitative research approaches were used to launch an international research collaboration between the U. S. and Cambodia. Cambodian officials requested assistance in learning qualitative approaches to complement the research skills of Cambodian mental health providers. This article provides a description of how U. S. researchers responded to that request and engaged with Cambodian psychiatrists to explore mental health needs and interventions in both countries and initiate a sustainable relationship. The early focus on qualitative research methodologies may be an avenue that mitigates some of the challenges that can characterize international research. In this study, early communications involved developing a plan to teach qualitative methods while also collecting and analyzing data in both countries that would address the mental health concerns experienced by respective care providers. A case study exemplar was embedded with a scripted focus group guide to collect data from U. S. focus groups, then share with Cambodian psychiatrists. Components of hermeneutic phenomenological interviewing and descriptive content analysis were used to simultaneously teach and enact the research methods, gather data in both countries to analyze, and inspire participants to replicate the methods in their ongoing work. Cambodian psychiatrists were able to demonstrate competence in facilitating focus groups after being participant-observers. Researcher/practitioners from both U. S. and Cambodian teams gained new understandings about the mental health needs of their patients. The mutual engagement of a research focus is an effective way to establish cross-cultural relationships. The challenges of staying with stable teams over times remain, but the content shared and learned in a participatory structure yields understandings that cross cultural boundaries. Anticipated and unexpected challenges may be offset by an intention of reciprocity and mutual engagement. The use of qualitative methodologies, early and repeatedly, can facilitate relational understanding.

Protocol for a randomized controlled trial in Cambodian individuals with PTSD: Trauma-Informed Treatment Algorithms for Advancing Novel Outcomes (Project TITAN).

INTRODUCTION: Low- and middle-income countries shoulder a disproportionate burden of mental health disorders with limited resources to support the provision of care using culturally relevant, evidence-based interventions. This is particularly true in Cambodia where the population continues to confront traumatic consequences of the Khmer Rouge genocide that targeted educated people, including treatment providers. Trauma-Informed Treatment Algorithms for Advancing Novel Outcomes (Project TITAN) will examine proof of concept and preliminary efficacy of culturally tailored interventions for symptoms of post-traumatic stress (PTS) among Cambodian adults. METHODS: A stepped care randomized controlled trial enrolling people seeking mental health treatment and priority populations with high rates of trauma exposure, including female entertainment and sex workers and sexual and gender minorities. In total, 160 participants with symptoms of PTS are randomized to Stabilization Techniques or Behavioral Activation plus Stabilization Techniques, implemented within a culturally relevant framework. Individuals who do not demonstrate a reduction in symptoms of PTS after six treatment sessions receive Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing therapy. PTS, depression, anxiety, and substance use are assessed at baseline and two and four months post-randomization. PLANNED ANALYSES: The percentage of individuals achieving reductions in symptoms of PTS after four months is the primary outcome. Secondary outcomes are depression, anxiety, and substance use over four months. Finally, machine learning analyses will be conducted to identify features at baseline and during treatment that predict outcomes. DISCUSSION: Findings will guide future development and implementation of interventions to improve mental health conditions among individuals in Cambodia and other resource-limited settings.

"No matter what, we just work with the trauma ": Mental Health Therapists' Care of Diverse Sexual and Gender Identity Citizens in Cambodia.

The convergence of trauma symptomatology, mental health symptoms, family and social difficulties, and intersectionality of diverse sexual and gender minority (SGM) individual issues is complex, multi-faceted, and challenging for the individuals in Cambodia who suffer them and for the therapists in Cambodia who meet individuals in treatment. We documented and analyzed the perspectives of mental health therapists in the context of a randomized control trial (RCT) intervention within the Mekong Project in Cambodia. The research questions explored perceptions of therapists' care of mental health clients, therapist wellbeing, and experiences of navigating within a research environment in which SGM citizens with mental health concerns receive treatment. The larger study enrolled 150 Cambodian adults, among which 69 identified as SGM. Three key patterns emerged across our interpretations. Clients seek help when symptoms interfere with daily life, therapists care for clients and themselves, and integrated research and practice is integral yet sometimes paradoxical. Therapists did not identify differences in terms of how they work with SGM clients compared with non-SGM clients. Future studies are warranted to examine a reciprocal academic-research partnership in which we examine therapists' work alongside rural community members, evaluate the process of embedding and fortifying peer supports within educational systems, and study the wisdom of traditional and Buddhist healers to address the discrimination and violence that citizens who identify as SGM disproportionately suffer. National Library of Medicine (U.S.). (2020). Trauma Informed Treatment Algorithms for Novel Outcomes (TITAN). Identifier NCT04304378.

Minding the complexities of psychotropic medication management for children and youth in the foster care system: Paper 1: The facilitators and barriers to learning about trauma-informed medication management.

The phenomenon of inappropriate polypharmacy among the foster care population arises in part due to the challenges related to integrating trauma-informed principles into service delivery. It is further exacerbated by the complexity of intersecting systems in which child welfare case workers need to communicate, including foster and biological parents, social service agencies, and advocates. Yet, there is limited research about trauma-informed psychotropic medication management interventions for child welfare staff. This pilot study was conducted to evaluate a trauma-informed psychotropic medication management intervention and is reported in two manuscripts, pertaining respectively to the facilitators and barriers to learning, and perceived individual and institutional trauma responsiveness. The intervention comprised of a 2-hour-long training session for child welfare staff and a 3-month web-based curriculum for leadership personnel, aiming to increase their understanding of trauma-informed psychotropic medication management. In the first paper, we report on the facilitators and barriers to learning, grouped into three categories: teacher attributes, learner attributes, and situational factors. In the second paper, in addition to trauma responsiveness ratings, we also provide a detailed account of one participant's life experience and perceptions of the intervention provided, as an exemplar of the psychosocial facets of resilience. The ABC Medication Scale scores that measured staff knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors associated with medications used to treat mental health symptoms showed a significant change in scores following training. Based on these findings, we provide practical solutions to address situational factors that are worth considering when providing training for child welfare staff. PAPER 1 ABSTRACT: THE FACILITATORS AND BARRIERS TO LEARNING ABOUT TRAUMA-INFORMED MEDICATION MANAGEMENT: Given that foster care children experience many challenges that threaten their well-being, their physical and mental health needs tend to be greater than those of their peers who are not in foster care. However, owing to the transient nature of the foster care placements, as well as continuous changes in medical providers and counselors, the screenings, supportive interventions, and treatments they receive may be fragmented. This is particularly problematic when considering that many of these children are medicated as a means of managing their behavior. Moreover, children in foster care are also more vulnerable to having the medications and diagnoses accumulate due to frequent placement changes and lack of treatment continuity. Our research was guided by the question "What are the facilitators and barriers to learning about trauma-informed psychotropic medication management?" We developed an intervention to address the issue of inappropriate polypharmacy and examined the facilitators and barriers to learning using a mixed methods design. The facilitators to learning were instructor-specific (e.g., reputation, teaching style, capacity for selecting and implementing relevant resources), learner-specific (altruism, capacity to see personal relevance in the learning situation, desire for knowledge/competence, career advancement/recognition-seeking), and situational (immediacy/on-demand resources, reinforcement of pleasant learning experience). Barriers were largely situational (workload and family demands). Based on these findings, we provide practical strategies for addressing situational factors that are worth considering when designing training curricula aimed at child welfare staff.

Minding the complexities of psychotropic medication management for children and youth in the foster care system: Paper 2: Levels of trauma responsiveness among child welfare staff.

BACKGROUND: Foster care children tend to have greater physical and mental health needs compared to those of their peers who are not in foster care due to many challenges that threaten their well-being. Yet, owing to frequent placement changes, their treatment may be fragmented. Moreover, if foster children are unable to provide important information about their own health status, and the same cannot be obtained from their families of origin, the resulting incomplete and/or inconsistent health history puts them at risk for unrecognized problems and conflicting diagnoses. Paradoxically, foster parents and resource providers often request psychotropic medications for children and youth in their care as a means of managing their behaviors. The phenomenon of inappropriate polypharmacy arises due in part to the difficulties related to integrating trauma-informed principles into the care process. It is further exacerbated by the complexity of intersecting systems in which child welfare case workers need to communicate including foster and biological parents, social service agencies, and advocates. In this second paper, we report on the same intervention as that discussed in the first paper, focusing on the effectiveness of the live 2-hour face-to-face training for child welfare staff and the 3-month web-based curriculum for leadership personnel in improving the participants' trauma responsiveness. RESEARCH QUESTIONS: 1. What are the child welfare staff's perceptions of their own knowledge, attitudes, and communication behaviors associated with medications used to treat mental health symptoms and monitoring for side-effects of psychotropic medication use in children? 2. What is the level of trauma responsiveness among child welfare staff? METHODOLOGY AND PARTICIPANTS: The ABC Medication Scale was employed to measure staff knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors associated with medications used to treat mental health symptoms before and after the intervention to determine if the training resulted in any improvements. Individual- and organizational-level trauma responsiveness was rated on a continuum of the Missouri Model: A Developmental Framework for Trauma-Informed Approaches. Artifacts of the web-based curriculum and qualitative interview data were analyzed by applying grounded theory methods. FINDINGS/RESULTS: There was a significant increase in The ABC Medication Scale scores following the training. The qualitative findings further revealed that majority of the participants rated themselves as "trauma aware" or "trauma responsive" on the Missouri Model, while indicating that their agencies could work harder to become more fully trauma-informed. As trauma-informed child welfare workforce that understands the complexity and advocacy requirements of psychotropic medication management is needed, further longitudinal research is required is to assess the training effects over time. In particular, the aim should be to establish (a) how knowledge and attitude shifts correlate with greater degrees of trauma responsiveness, and (b) if and how such trainings translate into improved systems of support.

Implementing a novel self-care clock strategy as part of a trauma awareness intervention in a university setting.

PURPOSE: This study compared post- and preintervention trauma-informed care attitudes, explored relationships among outcomes, and identified self-care behavior changes participants are willing to make. DESIGN AND METHODS: A quasi-experimental study with content analysis was conducted with 96 adults that took part in a Trauma Awareness Intervention including a novel self-care clock. CONCLUSIONS: Participants' trauma-informed care attitudes improved (p ≤ 0.05) compared to baseline and were positively related to their post-intervention compassion scores (p < 0.05). Qualitative analyses revealed self-awareness, self-care, empathy, applying a trauma lens, changing the narrative, and student-centeredness as the main themes in participants' responses. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: This university-based initiative had a positive impact on attitudes toward trauma and should be explored in other settings, as there is an unmet need for trauma-informed care strategies at the community level.

Advancing Soft Skills: Leadership Seminars for Clinical Nurse Leader Students.

This article describes a seminar course designed for a cohort of nursing students in a medium-sized, private Midwestern university. The purpose of the course was to help students develop the nonacademic skills that are important for successful completion of nursing school and entry into the health care workforce. The rationale for developing the course and the sample curriculum are presented, along with implications for future inquiry.

Development and piloting of a treatment foster care program for older youth with psychiatric problems.

BACKGROUND: Older youth in out-of-home care often live in restrictive settings and face psychiatric issues without sufficient family support. This paper reports on the development and piloting of a manualized treatment foster care program designed to step down older youth with high psychiatric needs from residential programs to treatment foster care homes. METHODS: A team of researchers and agency partners set out to develop a treatment foster care model for older youth based on Multi-dimensional Treatment Foster Care (MTFC). After matching youth by mental health condition and determining for whom randomization would be allowed, 14 youth were randomized to treatment as usual or a treatment foster home intervention. Stakeholders were interviewed qualitatively at multiple time points. Quantitative measures assessed mental health symptoms, days in locked facilities, employment and educational outcomes. RESULTS: Development efforts led to substantial variations from the MTFC model and a new model, Treatment Foster Care for Older Youth was piloted. Feasibility monitoring suggested that it was difficult, but possible to recruit and randomize youth from and out of residential homes and that foster parents could be recruited to serve them. Qualitative data pointed to some qualified clinical successes. Stakeholders viewed two team roles - that of psychiatric nurse and skills coaches - very highly. However, results also suggested that foster parents and some staff did not tolerate the intervention well and struggled to address the emotion dysregulation issues of the young people they served. Quantitative data demonstrated that the intervention was not keeping youth out of locked facilities. CONCLUSIONS: The intervention needed further refinement prior to a broader trial. Intervention development work continued until components were developed to help address emotion regulation problems among fostered youth. Psychiatric nurses and skills coaches who work with youth in community settings hold promise as important supports for older youth with psychiatric needs.

Using lecture capture: a qualitative study of nursing faculty's experience.

BACKGROUND: As lecture capture technology becomes widely available in schools of nursing, faculty will need to master new technological skills and make decisions about recording their classroom lectures or other activities. OBJECTIVES: This study sought to understand faculty's experience of using a new lecture capture system. DESIGN AND SETTING: This qualitative study used Kruger's systematic approach to explore undergraduate nursing faculty's first-time experience using a lecture capture system purchased by the university. METHOD: Four focus groups were conducted with a total of fourteen undergraduate faculty using lecture capture for the first-time. The interviews were recorded and transcribed and then analyzed by the researchers. RESULTS: Four themes were identified from the faculty interviews. Two of the themes expressed faculty's concerns about the teaching role, and two themes expressed the faculty's concerns about student learning. CONCLUSION: Participants experienced stress when learning to use the new lecture capture technology and struggled to resolve it with their own beliefs and teaching values. The impact of lecture capture on student learning, impact on class attendance, and the promotion of a culture of lecturing were revealed as important issues to consider when lecture capture becomes available.

Pioneering the psychiatric nurse role in foster care.

Older youth served in the foster care system have elevated rates of mental health disorders and are high users of mental health services, yet concerns have been raised about the quality of this care. This paper describes the details of a psychiatric nurse's work within a multidisciplinary team to address gaps in care for older youth with psychiatric disorders. We describe the process, outcomes, and lessons learned in developing and piloting a psychiatric nurse intervention for older youth in the foster care system as part of a multidimensional treatment foster care program. Our experiences support further work to develop a role for nursing to improve the quality of mental health treatment in foster care.

Diagnosis and medication overload? A nurse review of the psychiatric histories of older youth in treatment foster care.

Prior research has raised concern about the appropriateness of psychotropic medication use and the validity of psychiatric diagnosing for youth in child welfare but has lacked in-depth case information. This study reports results from a psychiatric nurse review conducted with eight youth entering a foster care intervention using case records and multiple key informant interviews. Results revealed extensive histories of unique (nonoverlapping) psychiatric diagnoses (M = 8, range 7-9) and past psychotropic medications (M = 13, range 9-21). The findings highlight the need to improve assessment practices and to create mechanisms that promote greater continuity of psychiatric care.